I love fast breaks, and I love playing full-court basketball, but offensively in the half court, I kind of take my time, let guys cut, and let the defense move. Then, if I have a move, I'll go. If not, I'll just hand it off to a teammate.
Having the trust and respect from your teammate is where it starts and that is getting to know guys off the court, even before basketball.
Im just trying to be positive. I like the guys (Im) around. Even though were not at the record Id like to be, even after a loss, guys are mad, but then we have fun and you move on. They look up to me. Ive been around eight years. A lot of these guys were in junior high or high school when I came into the NBA. I see how much of an influence I am off the court. I try to be careful how I approach things on and off the court, because I know these guys are watching.
Sometimes you get the rap of, 'Don't always play hard,' or, 'Just doing it for the money.' But there are guys that genuinely love the game of basketball and are always playing it and are always out there. There are guys that work hard and actually understand the game and are very knowledgeable off the court as well.
Every time I'm ever in L.A., if I have anytime off - which is rare - I'll go straight to the basketball court and play. That's a way for me to escape and get my mind off everything. I'm so competitive, so if I'm playing basketball, all I'm thinking about is winning.
Coaching staff: I know there's days you look at that film and you want to kill me. I'm not playing defense, taking bad shots, getting too many techs. But you always believe that I can be the guy. Through the tough times, you guys never left my side... That's something that I really appreciate and I never want to take you guys for granted. I thank you so much for being part of my life. And not just on the basketball court, but giving me talks about growing as a man first, and a basketball player next.
I love playing basketball because you could be having a rough day in your life, and while you're on the court it gives you a clear mind. I'm not worried about anything. I'm there just playing freely and I go out there all and I have fun.
Just because I had a good game doesn't change who I am,
my identity is in Christ and not in basketball, I love playing basketball and it's my job but at the same time I recognize that I'm a sinner and that's not gonna change regardless of how well I play on the court
Basketball also helps you learn to move your feet by playing defense and guarding guys, and that all carries over to playing football with staying square and having good footwork.
In the game of basketball, I play first off because I love it. I love to have fun. I love to run up and down the court.
Guys hated to play against me because my stock in trade was constant movement. I was quick but not fast so I would move my defender into picks, from one end of the court to another and wear him out until I had him tired and off-guard.
What I know is that if you're going to play half-court, you'd better have the greatest executioners of half-court basketball. If you run, you test the stamina and willpower of the other team. That's what I learned as a player.
I always want my shoes real clean. The front of my shoe is really like my personality, where off the court I'm kind of calm and kind of shy a little bit - low key. In the back, it's kind of crazy, just like me on the court. I love how both of my personalities are involved into the shoe.
Basketball is a full court game, so every drill must be done full court.
I learned a long time ago, it's my job to help guys in any area, whether it's on the court, off the court.
One thing when I started playing in the league, I saw that a lot of guys are friendly. It's OK to be friendly, especially off the court. But on the court, I want to dominate.
Whenever I'm out on the basketball court, I lace up and just hoop. Whether it's in summertime, at practice, in the games, playoffs, every time I step out on the basketball court, I approach it the same way.